Brandon's Confessions
by FreakyGreenEyes123
Summary: Extended/missing scene from Truth Be Told, where Brandon confesses to Lena what happened between him and Dani. One-shot.


**Disclaimer: I own nothing, and this is a continuation of that scene at the park with Brandon and Lena.**

* * *

"Honey, it's okay. You made a mistake. Tomorrow everything's going to be back to normal."

"No, things will never be normal again," Brandon answered, as he tried to fight the urge to tell her the truth about what happened. But his current condition suddenly heightened the feeling of guilt that he was trying so hard to mask from everyone.

"This is just a part of growing up. It's okay," Lena tried to assure him, but Brandon refused to believe her.

"No it's not…" he paused as he tried one last time to keep from telling her the truth. But before he knew it, his mouth was disagreeing with him, "…I slept with Dani."

"Dani?" Lena repeated in confusion, in hopes that she had misheard him. Brandon lowered his head shamefully, because it wasn't until Lena said her name that he realized what a mistake it was to tell her. He felt just as ashamed as he would have if he had just told either Stef or Mike.

Lena kept her eyes focused on Brandon, but her mind was elsewhere. She was trying to wrap her mind around what Brandon had just admitted to her and was attempting to rationalize every possibility in her mind before speaking. _Was there a girl at Anchor Beach with that same name? The girl in his band maybe? _

But everything Brandon had been rambling on about all day began to sink in. Their awkward conversation about crime and punishment finally started to make sense to her. He wasn't just mumbling random ideas because of the influence that the drugs had on him. He was feeling guilty and had been trying to confess all along, but she hadn't been paying enough close attention.

Lena tried to catch her breath after realizing that she had been so quite for so long that Brandon looked as if he were about to cry.

* * *

"Forget I said anything. It was stupid," Brandon continued as he began shaking his head and glancing in all different directions, in hopes that neither of his parents were listening.

"No," Lena stopped him automatically and reached her hand out, to place it over his own that was on top of the table. "I'm glad you told me," she said as she leaned her head in so that he would stare back at her. "…Umm," Lena stumbled as she tried to find the right thing to say. "…When did this happen?" she asked without a hint of accusation in her voice.

In truth she was understandably angry about the news, but she knew that showing that anger at this moment could not only make him close up, but it might just as well erase all of the progress that she had made today with him.

Even though she now realized that Brandon hadn't called her, because he felt that she was just as much his mother as Stef was, she still felt that she couldn't turn him away because he needed help.

He called her, not Stef or Mike.

He confessed to her.

And Lena knew, that the reason why he couldn't handle Stef or Mike right now was because he felt guilty.

Regardless of the reason behind his disclosure, she couldn't let it get to her. She had to put her own feelings aside for this. "Brandon, it's okay," she tried to assure him, "I'm not mad."

"It was the day before my audition," he finally answered. "I didn't mean for it to happen..."

"I believe you."

"I was just feeling really depressed after the whole id thing happened with Vico and I… had a few drinks and then Dani came over… we talked, and then one thing led to another and—"

"You were drunk?" Lena asked with raised eyebrows, as she tried to wrap her mind around what really happened.

"I think so. I mean, I'm not sure," Brandon shook his head slightly. He knew that Lena would make him out to be the victim if that was the case, but he didn't feel like one. He took part in all of this too and he needed Lena to understand that. "But that's not the point. She was just trying to be nice to me—"

"She took advantage of you," Lena replied in a stern voice.

"No, she didn't. We both—"

"Brandon, you were drunk," Lena interrupted as if there was no room for argument. "You were drinking and she knew that. You weren't in the right state of mind to make a decision like that. Not to mention the fact that you're sixteen years old. What she did to you was statutory rape. She can go to jail."

"I know that, but _I_ chose to get drunk. And _I_ remember everything. _I _was there... _I_ was the one who kissed her first."

"Your judgment was impaired," Lena shook her head as if nothing he was confessing to her had any relevance. "You're not to blame for this. Dani knew what she was doing was wrong. She's the adult and you're the kid. She should have known better. And what about her? Was she—"

"Drunk? No, but—"

"But what?" Lena asked as if there was no possible excuse for her.

"But I started all of this," Brandon practically yelled, causing Lena to look at him with both confusion and shock evident in her face.

"What do you mean?"

"It's my fault that Dani and my Dad broke up… I told him about the money she leant me to pay him back, and then he broke it off with her. She even admitted to me that she never would've never had sex with me, if her and my dad were still together—"

"She's a grown woman, Brandon. And your dad made the choice to break up with her. Not you."

"No, you don't get it," Brandon's tone of voice heightened. "I was the reason they broke up and I was the same reason they got back together. That same night, my dad relapsed and I…called Dani, and she went to find him… This could've all been over and I would've never seen her again, but I screwed that up too. Just like I've been screwing up everything else around me."

"You haven't. You _have not_," Lena tried to assure him, but he squinted his eyes at her in disbelief.

"Are you even looking at me? I'm high as a kite right now," Brandon argued.

"And you're telling me the truth. You called me. You didn't go and make another bad decision."

"This feels like a really bad decision to me," Brandon scoffed.

Lena sighed and got up from her side of the bench-table and sat beside her son, "You couldn't keep this secret inside, Brandon. You had to tell someone. And I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but it's a good thing you did. Keeping this kind of weight on your shoulders wouldn't have done anyone any good, least of all you," she continued as she put her hand on his shoulder and tried to comfort him.

"I hate myself," Brandon mumbled. "And now, I hate myself even more because I feel like I'm using you."

"Hey," Lena interrupted. "It's okay. I understand why you didn't call your mom or your dad… And you didn't use me," Lena said more sternly, "I'm your mom. I told you that already. And you were right to call me."

Brandon nodded and before he could think about what it, he wrapped his arms around the woman, "I'm so sorry for dragging you into this," he cried into her shoulder for a few seconds and allowed the woman to embrace him back.

"It's okay," she answered for the thousandth time today.

But immediately afterward, he released his hold on Lena and glanced back down at the table. "I'm going to fix this somehow. I promise."

"Oh, no you are not," Lena said matter-of-factly. "Last time you tried to fix something by yourself, things didn't end well, remember?"

And she was right. He tried to bribe Ana and almost got his father arrested while at the same time almost cost his mother her job. He tried to pay Mike back and almost landed Callie in jail. Lena still couldn't understand why Brandon had still felt the need to take care of everyone by himself. "We'll figure something out together, Brandon. Okay? You're not alone in this anymore."

Brandon stared back at his mother and nodded. Because for the very first time, he believed that what she said to be true.


End file.
